


The Curse We Named Soulmates

by BetulePendule



Category: Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fairy Tale, Atypical Soulmate Dymamics, Bad Jokes, Eventual Smut, Fairy Tale Curses, Fluff, Happy Ending, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Komaeda Nagito Being Komaeda Nagito, Komaeda Nagito Hates Himself, Magic, Multi, Politics, Prince!Komaeda Nagito, Smut tags to be added, Soulmates, Switching, Swords, Townsman!Hinata Hajime
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-08
Updated: 2020-07-26
Packaged: 2020-09-23 08:54:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,470
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20337451
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BetulePendule/pseuds/BetulePendule
Summary: We follow a story of a young townsman named Hajime Hinata. There's a festival in town, which is to celebrate the royal prince's coming of age, followed by a ball for the prince to pick a future partner. The problem is... that the current king doesn't approve of the idea of handing the throne over to his strange son. Time calls for drastic measures that include extensive population reduction... executions.+++Estimated Final Word Count: ~ 15K (???)Estimated Final Chapter Count: ~ 15 (???)+++This is a rather easy-to-read fanfic that's gonna be much shorter than my other work. The final length really just depends on how readers and myself like it as well as how many ideas I get while working on it.The story's (probably) getting a rewrite.See PROGRESS NOTE for more info.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> This story is based on a dream I had. In it, Nagito turned Hajime into a watermelon who cried thereafter... I have weird dreams. And, no this is not a summary. It was the atmosphere that inspired me and I needed to write something I don't need to think about anyway, so I did.
> 
> Take the prologue with a grain of salt as things may change as I write the story.

There is not a single soul that isn't acquainted with fairy tales.  
This is one of them.

The most notable difference is that this one isn't suitable for children.  
Adult content is to be expected.

This time we plunge ourselves into a kingdom with a sabotaging ruler and into the world where soulmates are an infamous, unpredictable lottery.

The first half is a teenage townsman, a cynical, yet somewhat hopeful unwanted child. The leader soul.

“I'll do it. You saved me, so I owe it to you. Also I... I feel like it's the right thing to do.” - Hajime Hinata

The second half is a teenage prince, a broken unwanted child about to be exterminated. The tactician soul.

“Oh? I am not being pessimistic by not believing in soulmates.  
If that were true, I would meet at least one myself. For the sake of such people, I hope this rumor to be false.” - Nagito Komaeda

Now, buckle up, folks. It's story time.


	2. PROGRESS NOTE (chill, everything's fine)

Hello everyone!

First of all, I want to apologize for not having updated in so long. And yes, this is going to get _updated and finished_. You can calm down. This note is to eliminate any disappointment you might be feeling, thinking I wouldn't update again.

Long story short, I've been forcing myself to write for a long time and it resulted in me now not enjoying writing anymore. As forcing myself to write is what led to this and it didn't help me get back on track (I've been trying for the last couple of months), I'll now try to revive my love for writing by being as patient with myself as possible. Hopefully I'll soon be able to replace my toxic way of looking at my writing with a healthy one instead.

If you're asking yourself why this note is placed before the rest of the chapters, that's because I planned to rewrite them. At the moment I'm not sure of what exactly it is that I'll do with them. I really dislike my rewrite of the chapter called 'The Initial Warning Is Here' and I need for my love for writing to come back to decide further on rewriting / keeping the original and the story simple. This note is here so that new readers read this note before those chapters that may or may not last.

If you have any questions about the plot or any suggestions, don't be afraid to let me know. What do you know, you might even inadvertently inspire me (which would be much appreciated at the moment).

This progress note will be deleted once I finally update again, meaning comments to this note will be deleted as well, so if you have something you want me to remember (like a suggestion you really want implemented), comment it to the previous chapter (I sometimes go back to comments in my inbox to remind myself of your suggestions).

Thanks for reading this and being patient with me. Stay safe!


	3. The Initial Warning Never Helps

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hajime returns to his hometown to find out that the long-awaited festival has already started. Little does he know of what messed-up shit is about to go down and what it all means to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, here's the first chapter of this story. Hope you like it.

Once upon a time, in a rather small, meaningless kingdom, there lived a young lad named Hajime Hinata.

He was currently returning to his hometown, which also happened to be the capital city of this tiny kingdom. Up ahead, there was the so-called South Bridge followed by the South Gate that was hovering over it. The bridge connected two sides of a calm, yet astonishingly wide river, meaning the bridge itself was ridiculously long, so much so that it could host the country's entire army.

Everything was so calm that he could just put on headphones and get lost in his thoughts. However, there were no headphones in this day and age, so no music for him...

Townspeople almost never used this south exit, there being rumors of the following forest path being cursed and such. Said forest was now behind Hajime's back.

However, Hajime found that absurd. He didn't actually believe there was a single property of that forest that made it any more uncanny than any other woods. To be sure, he'd crossed this place many times in the past, yet he never came across anything strange.

Now that he thought about it, he'd never even run into a deer, let alone a wolf or a bear. The woods were... strangely serene.

Well, he wasn't worried either way. After all, he had Akane, a red-tinted brown mare borrowed from his friend's father. He depended on her athletic physique every time he traveled to neighboring towns to deliver his family's products. He'd actually known Akane ever since she was just a little foal and because of her temper, Hajime was the only person she allowed to mount her.

He finally reached the bridge and Akane's hooves clapped on the stone:

**clop**

**clop**

**clop**

‘...Kazuichi?’ he thought. Sure enough, despite the distance, the radiant, long magenta hair couldn't be missed. This friend of his, who happened to be the son of Akane's actual owner, was running towards him.

They met in the middle of the bridge, Kazuichi panting heavily.

“Is something wrong, Kazuichi? What's with the rush?” Hajime called, pulling the reins and stopping.

“What? No! I'm just excited to see you back!” the boy exclaimed, a large grin spread across his face and he placed his connected hands behind his head in a carefree manner.

Hajime cocked his eyebrow despite his mild amusement. “Let me guess. You've been waiting for me the whole morning safely behind the fortification, but as soon as you saw me, you ran out while completely forgetting about the fact this place is the Southern Gate.” He shook his head.

Kazuichi's face was blank for a few seconds.

Once he'd processed what was just said, he froze and his widened eyes started flicking from side to side nervously. To top it all off, he subconsciously stepped back, stuttering: “W-what? Are you implying I'm afraid of this place? H-heh, hehe... I don't believe that stuff! Of course not! And even if there were such things as monsters, they'd never come out in broad daylight like this! N-no, I just wanted to check whether you weren't attacked by a _human_... or an animal!”

Hajime couldn't help but roll his eyes internally. “Don't worry about me. This road is the safest one there is, you know. There are no bandits on it. Besides, even if... a human or an animal decided to jump me, Akane would happily trample them over.”

At that, Akane neighed joyfully as if to express pride in her anything-smaller-than-herself killing skill. It should be noted there were very few things of greater size than Akane.

Before Kazuichi could protest, Hajime added reassuringly: “I would know if it were any dangerous. Remember? I used to explore the forest when I was a kid and nothing ever happened to me.”

Kazuichi sighed, finally looking a bit calmer. “Man, I still can't believe your parents let you do that.”

Hajime just shrugged.

Before any more could be said about this past recipe for disaster (that somehow ended with a happy ending), a neigh and a horse's snort could be heard. In a snap, that made the two turn their head towards the town.

Their eyes widened at the sight.

On the very same bridge, there was a small group, two knights on horseback at the front and two more at the rear. In the middle was a royal horse carriage pulled by the finest, most expensive of horses. Even just a single one of these horses were of more value than Hajime and Kazuichi's entire families' property was. The carriage, along with the escort, were coming their way.

A second later, Hajime recollected his composure and immediately started clearing the way, cuing Akane to the side of the bridge. It took a bit longer for Kazuichi to close the gaping hole that was his mouth and he followed Hajime's lead. He gave Hajime a half-excited, half-panicked look.

Hajime didn't reciprocate eye contact to Kazuichi. His eyes were long transfixed on the nearing group. It's not that he wasn't taken aback just like his friend. In fact, he had no idea what to do or whether it was expected of him to show respect by dismounting his own horse. Yet, curiosity got the better of him and he couldn't help but try to catch a glimpse of whatever was inside the carriage.

Only when a guard turned his attention to him, did he make himself look busy by slowly climbing off Akane and then preoccupying himself by stroking her muzzle.

Soon enough, the whole group had already ridden past the two. They sighed in relief.

“Hey, did you see...?” Kazuichi started.

“The king? No.”

Averting his eyes to look at the convoy disappearing in the woods, Hajime thought: ‘That's strange. Why would the king leave the town at a time like this? It's the prince's birthday tomorrow, which means everyone should be preparing for the concurrent ball. And why use this hardly used exit, anyway? What--’

“Man, I never imagined I could ever get to see the royal carriage up close like that!” Kazuichi exclaimed, then placed his hands on his hips with a thoughtful look. “But why'd the king leave the town? Ah! Maybe he forgot the prince's birthday gift in a different town and he's going to get it! Yeah, and he's taking a shortcut through the forest! I mean, the knights surely will protect him from all those monsters out there!”

Listening to Kazuichi's babbling, Hajime rolled his eyes again as he started walking towards the town again. “I thought you said you didn't believe in 'those things in the forest'.”

“No, I'm just cautious!” the boy said stubbornly with a pout.

“....Right,” he uttered, shaking his head.

Kazuichi didn't even register his friend's remark. “Ah, this is such a good day. A festival, street performers and musicians, I see the royal carriage from up close... Not only that, the family's inn is gonna be thriving from the huge amount of tourists! It's great for business! ...Though it's sad this is only a once-in-50-years opportunity.”

“Is it really all that sad? I mean, this whole thing is only supposed to take place when a direct heir's husband or wife is being selected before both ascend to the throne. It means the country's quite peaceful when these festivals don't reoccur every decade,” Hajime commented.

“Yeah... I guess I see your point,” the other admitted, scratching his head. “Still, I'm a bit disappointed the current heir is a guy and not a chick. Imagine that, courting a princess! Like, an actual princess!”

For whatever reason, Hajime suddenly got the feeling Kazuichi should _not_ be allowed near any princesses. He got rid of that thought and said instead: “On the other hand, you don't need to worry about deciding whether it's worth it for you to go to the ball.”

As he finished speaking, he was already close enough to the gate to notice something. There was a new guard on watch (or a guard he'd simply never met before) today. The man kept eyeing the duo coming towards him with a stressed, uncertain gaze. There was an infinite loop of tiny changes in his expression and he was stuck in it. It looked like he wanted to say something, but kept changing his mind whether it was worth it.

“You know, that just sounded like _you_ are still deciding,” Kazuichi teased with a cheeky grin.

Hajime didn't react.

His attention was glued onto the now tense guardsman who looked like he was now waiting for Hajime's decision. Hajime, however, didn't realize that.

++++++++

“Shit. Shit, shit, SHIT!!” the prince's bodyguard cursed repeatedly, pacing the marble floor, trying to control himself whilst unable to. It looked almost amusing to the prince to see his bodyguard like this.

The above-mentioned royal male didn't let his raging protector's attitude sway him as he remained sitting calmly in his chair, legs crossed. “I understand your desire to slowly stomp a groove in my chamber's floor, Fuyuhiko, but could you please control yourself a bit? I don't feel like listening to you and Nekomaru starting a shouting match because of that word you keep repeating over and over.”

It seemed Fuyuhiko was about to say something, but he changed his mind, noticing Nagito's expression go dark. “Let's not allow anybody to get suspicious, shall we?” Afterwards, the white-haired man moved on to start writing again.

The bodyguard sighed, finally calming himself down. He stepped forward and to say something actually meaningful this time: “Isn't it treason what that bastard's about to do, though?” He made sure to keep as quiet as possible.

Nagito didn't lift his chin up to look at him when answering, too preoccupied with work. “Hm? Yes, I can see where you're coming from. However, I am afraid there is nobody qualified to punish him for that. You know, him being the king and all...”

“There must be something we can do! Don't tell me you're not taking this seriously!” Fuyuhiko hissed through his teeth.

“Oh, I _am_ taking this seriously. What kind of monster would I have to be to overlook the countless deaths that are about to happen? So many rolling heads because of me...” he trailed off, looking out the window nearby, putting his quill pen in its stand.

“Uh... well... It's not your fault for this shit to happen, is it? Why would--”

**snigger**

“Of course I am the one to blame. I _am_ a monster, after all... Just a different kind,” the prince finished, a plastic smile on his face.

Fuyuhiko just stared, having no comeback to that.

++++++++

With each step, the guard grew visibly more and more anxious. That made Hajime bite his lower lip, thinking: ‘What's up with that guy? Don't tell me we were supposed to do something like kneel down when the king drove by and now he's deciding whether he's supposed to arrest us.’

One more step and...

“Hey, you two!” the man suddenly blurted out.

Both of them stopped dead in their tracks, Hajime reaching the pique of anxiety and Kazuichi growing a surprised, frightened look.

“Let me give you some advice. Don't, I repeat, don't keep the ball invitation letters that are waiting for you at home. If a patrol guard wants to see it, say you've already sold it or even lie about your age and say you're not eligible to go to the ball. You _mustn't_ go to the ball if you want to live.” He gave Hajime a look when he finished. “Don't tell anybody what I've just told you. Understand?”

The two were dumbstruck, but Kazuichi managed to get out with a stutter: “H-hey, we weren't planning to go any--”

“Good for you. Now scram!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't mean for Nagito to be a literal monster in this, but if the idea gets support, I might make it literal. At the moment he simply dislikes himself. However, don't think he doesn't have a plan of his own in this situation. He doesn't like his father, either.


	4. The Mumbling of an Old Hag

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hajime gets his invitation letter and he wonders what could be happening. The warning he was given previously doesn't prove itself to be useful, him ending in trouble for no apparent reason anyway. Things start making even less sense.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, here's the next chapter.

Hajime just stared. In his hand, the long-awaited and now suspicious item that had arrived at his home address.

The ball invitation letter was a roll of parchment tied by a red silk ribbon and sealed with a seal made of melted black wax. Also, there was a brooch attached to the ribbon via a sturdy pin. Both the metal accessory and the seal were rather eye-catching, the royal family's emblem having been imprinted into them.

The boy scrutinized the whole thing. The royal emblem, also known as the Regal Lion-Dog Head, looked legitimate to him. However, he wasn't an expert and he could only assess the authenticity of the brooch's color, specifically the color of the eyes which were the right color emerald green. Hajime wasn't too sure how this ancient animal became the symbol of the late royal family, but that didn't bother him much at the moment.

He broke the seal and unrolled the parchment, finding what seemed to be a proper invitation letter with both the seal again and the king's signature at the bottom of the page.

Shaking his head, he thought: ‘Was that guard's warning just a threat instead? But why?’

**sigh**

‘Whatever. I'm pretty sure neither of us was planning to go anyway.’

There was this tradition that only citizens living in the capital would be invited to balls where the future ruler's spouse would be chosen. However, most commoners could not afford to buy expensive clothing and there was only a slim chance for them to be chosen, so people like Hajime and Kazuichi would often sell their invitation letters off to wealthy visitors. This sort of thing was common practice throughout many generations, but Hajime didn't really know where it all first originated.

This strange warning, the fact the king left the town at a time like this... Curiosity got the better of him. After hiding the parchment underneath his shirt, he was off.

Going onto the wooden balcony outside his room, he then used the humble outdoor staircase to get on the main street. This way he didn't have to go through the family shop downstairs and face millions of questions. He knew who to ask.

++++++++

Hajime ended up wandering the streets, Byakuya Togami, his acquaintance and a soon to be notary, wasn't home. He assumed the man was out with his teacher, possibly at the Senate as usual.

‘I might go see Kazuichi and talk to him instead, but... He won't really know anything either... Maybe I should just go back?’ he thought while passing through the over-crowded town square.

Garlands everywhere, confetti occasionally falling off the sky from who knows where... The festival was lively. His worst problem was the lack of space for him to go through, the various tents, stalls and people blocking the way. Were it not for the subliminal bad feeling he had, he might actually enjoy it, but not now.

Seeing the royal emblem on one of the ornamental flags hanging from the side of a building, he frowned to himself.

However, it wasn't too long after that something made that scowl even deeper. In the crowd he noticed somebody he knew. It was Teruteru Hanamura, his somewhat pervasive neighbor. Not feeling like making his mood even sourer, Hajime dove into the nearest tent, not caring whom or what he might interrupt.

Inside the indigo tent, there was a cloaked old lady lightly clasping the hands of a girl. It seemed like this was a fortune teller's domain.

The younger of the two didn't even notice Hajime's barging in, euphorically jumping up and running off.

“I told her that if she didn't go to the ball, she'd regret it for the rest of her life,” the witch explained nonchalantly to the newcomer.

“Oh,” he muttered, feeling somewhat happy for the girl.

The old woman let out a snigger. “What's with that positive tone? If she gives up on the prince and leaves the town sooner, she'll board a ship that will be attacked by a bunch of pirates that indulge in human trafficking. I simply led her future in the way of a certain, yet quick death.”

Hajime's insides clenched themselves, not knowing what to think of this lady. He stepped back when she neared him and grabbed his hand.

“H-hey, I don't want to kno--”

She ignored him. “You, young man, you have a certain piece of parchment on you, don't you?” He flinched. “Once you leave here and go home, you'll be surrounded by a group of guards for wielding a forgery of a royal document. Copying such things requires capital punishment in this kingdom, does it not?”

“How would you--? I didn't pirate anything!” he exclaimed, trying to slip out of her grasp. She was stronger than she looked.

It was after she mumbled a few words under her breath that she finally let him go. “I don't believe you,” he spit out as he hurried out immediately.

‘Just what is going on here? This must be some sort of a prank today, I swear,’ he thought to himself while making his way back home. Despite deeming the woman to be a crazy psychopath, he still chose the most crowded streets to use.

It didn't take long before a guardsman marched towards him and stood in his way.

++++++++

The young prince's pewter gaze was fixated outside the arched window of his room, watching the robust stone bridge that lead to the internal area beyond the castle's fortification. It wasn't the bridge that caught his attention. It was the guards riding on horses, forcefully dragging a bunch of handcuffed young people along. The group was accompanied by occasional screams for the youngsters' parents.

“The first wave is here,” he murmured.

Both his bodyguards, Fuyuhiko and Peko, watched the sad scene as well. Then, they suddenly fell to their knees.

**step**

**step**

Nagito regretted not having closed the door after himself. Without turning around, and despite knowing the answer already, he asked: “To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit, Your Majesty?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Although I did enjoy writing this chapter, I'm still looking forward to the following one more. It's always fun to write about Hajime and Nagito's first encounters.

**Author's Note:**

> Anyway, if you like my writing style or have some type of request, don't be afraid to let me know.
> 
> Also, you can check out my other work if you want to know what you're getting yourself into.


End file.
